From the Bride…Our vision was “simple elegance.” We wanted to achieve a balance of traditional and modern, classic and unique – a wedding that would be memorable and timeless. For our ceremony we chose a beautiful, white steeple congregational church in Connecticut: the First Congregational Church of Old Lyme. This classic New England church was incorporated in 1665 and is as rich in beauty as it is in tradition. Our reception venue, Eolia Mansion, was the summer home of the Harkness family beginning in 1907 and is now part of Harkness State Park. The Gatsby-like setting on Long Island Sound includes ocean views, sprawling lawns, hidden gardens and admiring fountains. Guests enjoyed cocktails and dancing under the tented terrace and dinner in candlelit rooms throughout the estate.While the beautiful location set the tone of the wedding, the details added the charm and character. Every decision was made with the “simple elegance” vision in mind. Classic hydrangeas in soft colors of pale pink, green and white were used for the centerpieces and to decorate the Mansion’s mantles alongside floating candles. A clean and elegant bouquet of white hydrangeas, garden and spray roses and ranunculus flowers created a tailored and classic bridal bouquet. Guests were welcomed to the reception with handcrafted pink paisley place cards tied with sage ribbon and the traditional guest book was replaced by small note cards on which guests could leave marriage well-wishes. These items, along with calligraphy bride and groom chair signs, were designed and created by artists and craftsmen discovered on Etsy. Pale pink cards were tucked into the napkins of each place setting which listed the charitable donations made to non-profit organizations in honor of our guests.

The wedding celebration was truly everything we hoped it would be and the planning was a labor of love – worth every appointment, every blog search and all the time spent researching and working with talented vendors. As a young girl I often dreamed of a truly special wedding day. I am touched today to say that our wedding was worthy of that young girl’s wish and a day that we are more than proud to remember as the first of our marriage.